Crowds seeking Eidi in theatres this week are in for bit of Dabangg, lot of Dhoom3 with extra toppings of Sallu!

Riding high on Sallu-ism, Kick is a good, masala, family entertainer expected to rule theatres for coming two weeks. It borrows heavily from the Dhoom3 template – foreign locales (Warsaw, Poland), daring heists, designer dresses, extravagant sets for songs, car chases and a meaty role for the leading lady (unlike other movies of same breed). Jacqueline Fernandez looks ravishing throughout and Kick will do her career some good.

However, unlike Dhoom3, Kick has a credible support cast to lift the movie whenever needed. The early twenty minute sequence featuring Sanjay Mishra in the police station right upto Sallu and Mithun gyrating over crates of alcohol is the highlight of the movie. Nawazuddin Siddique sizzles every time he appears and Randeep Hooda’s towering presence comes to the fore. Mithun looks the youngest (in a decade), Nawazuddin meanest and Randeep hottest!

By the time the movie ends, you wish Sallu and Randeep had worked as partners for some duration. That’s an area where Kick disappoints. In a bid for excess Sallu-ism, you wish the support cast and the script had a bit more say in the venture. And you wish it didn’t pick on the Dhoom3 template, irrespective of the records that franchise broke. Sallu’s latest venture lacks a unique “kick” and that’s why its run won’t exceed once Rohit Shetty’s Singham Returns with fresh set of car chases, explosions and stunts.

Till then, the audience don’t mind. They wanted more of Sallu, they got it. The crowds have been whistling, singing, shouting and walking with that swagger, ever since the movie released. Soon you will find youngsters ringing all the temple bells while walking in and using the dialogues like “Phone Utha lo, incoming free hai” and “Meri Cat mujh pe hi attack”!

But will all this help the movie break even? Kick is saddled with high initial costs (Rs 125 crore) and hence needs above Rs 150 crore grossing to be called a hit.

One minor point shown which I felt could have a negative impact to society – a middle class couple give up their suffocating service class life when they don’t have the funds to cure an ailing daughter. They commit suicide with a note seeking help from a messiah. Reality doesn’t work that way and I sincerely hope, no coward couple commits suicide leaving a young girl alone in this big, bad world.

Box Office Prediction: A masala entertainer is the toughest product to assemble as it needs to please people across extreme cultures, economic backgrounds, intellects and upbringing. The results are unpredictable too. Holiday, a better movie, finished with Rs 112 crore whereas average fare like Humpty Sharma, Ek Villain have hit 70 crores/98 crores respectively with some ease. That apart, this could be all about Sallu and his fans. Kick should just about cross the 150 crore mark, but not much beyond.